


The Winner Takes It All

by wearethenorth



Series: Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight) [4]
Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Fantastic Four (Comicverse), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Thor - All Media Types
Genre: Darcy Feels, Darcy is the fandom bicycle and I love it, F/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, everyone should have a steve rogers in their life, steve rogers is a sweetheart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-15
Updated: 2014-09-15
Packaged: 2018-02-17 12:04:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2309057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wearethenorth/pseuds/wearethenorth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You know, dude, the deal with you and me didn’t start with you threatening my friends. It didn’t even start when you flat out told me I didn’t meet your expectations of a soulmate. It all started with the fact that I was born with the words telling me I wasn’t good enough.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Winner Takes It All

**Author's Note:**

> oghmygod this was supposed to be funny but i was listening to sad songs so it ended up sad

Tony was laughing his ass of when she entered the tower, a dazed look on her face.

“That didn’t go how I planned.”

“You _think?”_ The billionaire cackled, and Natasha cracked a smirk beside him.

“Shut up,” Darcy snapped. “I had walked out there with every intention of throwing his offer back in his face, okay? All my life wondering why the _fuck_ my soul mate didn’t want me, and now he shows up apologizing and I agree to a _date?_ What the fuck was I _thinking?”_

And then—because her jibe at herself had hit _waaay_ too close to home—she burst into tears, leaning into Steve as he moved forward to wrap his massive arms around her.

The dude gave the best hugs.

Twenty-five years of insecurities came flooding back with Doom’s appearance into her life, and Darcy, though she tried, simply couldn’t keep them at bay anymore.

“Is there something wrong with me?” She mumbled into Steve’s chest.

His arms tightened around her. “There is _nothing_ wrong with you.”

“But—“

“Darcy Jay Lewis,” Steve pulled her away so he could look her in the eyes. “You are the embodiment of a _Mumford & Sons_ song.”

Darcy sniffed. “ _Lover of the Light_?”

“ _Lover of the Light_ ,” Steve grinned, and Darcy returned it with a watery smile.

“That’s quite possibly the best compliment ever. Times two, since it’s coming from Captain America,” she hugged him once more. “Bucky Barnes is a lucky man. God, I wish the both of you were my soulmates.”

Darcy felt Steve smile into her shoulder. “Just say the word and we’re yours, doll.”

“Okay, _ew,”_ Tony piped up. “Captain America did _not_ just offer to let Darcy join in on him and his Russian assassin soulmate in front of me.”

Natasha smirked. “We’re all deviants, Stark. You just like showing off more.”

“Well, you’re not _wrong.”_

Four hours later, Darcy sat on the balcony of the River Café, fiddling with her napkin under the table. The place was apparently one of the most expensive restaurants in New York—Doom had assured her money wouldn’t be a problem over phone (Odin knew how he got her number)—and Doom had apparently rented out the entire terrace just for the two of them.

And he hadn’t even showed up yet.

She had been shown to the singular table over twenty minutes ago by a solemn-faced waiter with a super fake Brooklyn accent, and had spent her time since admiring the view. To say it was gorgeous would be an understatement. She was practically directly under the Brooklyn Bridge, overlooking the East River. Across her, she could see the flashing lights of lower Manhattan, Stark Tower gleaming in the middle of it all.

The restaurant itself was beautifully decorated. When Happy had dropped her off—in a limo, at Tony’s insistence—it seemed like she had walked into a hipster wonderland. Fairy lights had twinkled all about her, glittering from leafless trees and colorful flowers that she didn’t recognize. She had had to shake it all off and strut inside the restaurant to avoid looking like a bumbling tourist—New York was still so new to her, after all.

She didn’t notice the man enter the terrace until her sat gracefully in the seat in front of her.

“Apologies for my tardiness,” he said, and Darcy couldn’t help but gape as he straightened the lapels of his _—expensive—_ suit jacket. “Diplomatic matters can be tedious, but they are necessary.”

“Uhhhh… Doom?”

 _Nice one, Darce_.

“Victor, please,” he smiled kindly. (KINDLY) “Assuming, of course, I may call you Darcy.”

“Sure?”

She really couldn’t be faulted for being as inarticulate as she was.

Victor von Doom—sans the mask and the annoying third-person reference thing—was _hot._

Not like ‘Harry-Styles’ hot either.

Like ‘young-Harrison-Ford-as-Indiana-Jones’ hot.

_Be still my beating heart._

His brown eyes glittered in the New York City lights, his brown hair sprinkled with grey at the temples—just how old was he again?—and despite the slight scarring she could see underneath the scruff on his cheeks, he appeared to be a golden-skinned Adonis.

Thankfully, she was snapped out of her ogling by the arrival of the waiter.

“For you, ma’am?”

Oh shit, she hadn’t even looked at the menu.

“We’ll have the tasting menu, I think,” Doom—Victor, she reminded herself, this man was her soulmate, after all—smiled at her across the table, as if very much aware of her predicament. “Yes?”

“That’s fine,” she sent the waiter a small smile and absolutely did _not_ blush.

“You look beautiful,” he told her once the waiter had left. Darcy felt her mouth dry at the sincerity of his words, reminded once more of why she was here.

“You sure it’s not just my assets?” She sent him a pointed look, and he had the decency to look ashamed. Darcy started before he could reply. “You know, dude, the deal with you and me didn’t start with you threatening my friends. It didn’t even start when you flat out told me I didn’t meet your expectations of a soulmate. It all started with the fact that I was born with the words telling me I _wasn’t good enough_.”

Doom—oh yeah, he was definitely back to Doom—was silent for a moment, his face as blank as a slab of stone, and for a second Darcy wondered if she had crossed the line with him.

“I’m sorry.”

Darcy stood to leave, because if she waited a moment longer, she would burst into tears. She’d already cried once on Doom’s account. She wouldn’t bet on a second time.

“Wait, Darcy.” She stilled— _stupidstupidstupid_ —when she heard his voice crack. “Please, wait. I—I’m sorry.”

“Yeah,” she said. “Me too.”

And she strode out without another word.


End file.
